John F. Kennedy was elected to President in the 1960 election when he ousted Richard Nixon. John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline Kennedy, made a beautiful couple, and the American people embraced them in their wonderful representation of the quintessential American family. In fact, John F. Kennedy was supported so fully by the American people that even when he did make mistakes, the repercussions from the people of America were less animated than they would have been for a less popular president.
Unfortunately for America, John F. Kennedy’s term and life were cut short on November 22, 1963 when he was gunned down in Dallas, Texas while riding in a presidential motorcade. When the news of John F. Kennedy’s murder broke, a veritable eruption of Mount Media occurred. Tasteful publications ran responsible articles expressing true sadness at the loss of John F. Kennedy, and dirtier organizations attempted to attract readership through the publishing of various conspiracy theories, which varied in their degrees of ridiculousness. ‘Who killed JFK?’ is a question that is still asked today, and while many people have tried to answer it, the truth has not been forthcoming.
There are so many different theories as to who really killed JFK, and why they did it, that the sheer amount of dissention amongst the self-titled “experts” of John F. Kennedy’s assassination suggests that little credibility can really be given to any of them. The Warren Commission, formed by Lyndon Johnson after he became president prior to John F. Kennedy’s death, decided that Lee Harvey Oswald was the sole conspirator and murderer in the assassination of John F. Kennedy, and, from evidence produced by the Warren Commission, that appears to be the truth. Conspiracy theorists believe that the Warren Commission tampered with the evidence that they collected, but because there are very little records or eyewitness accounts of the evidence before it was collected by the Warren Commission (and almost no credible proof), there is no way for experts to conclusively prove that the Warren Commission tampered with or created any evidence. Most of the “evidence” that conspiracy theorists identify is really just glorified eyewitness accounts that vary from person to person with barely any discernable regularities between eyewitnesses cited by different researchers. It is this lack of consistency and reliable evidence that finally identifies Lee Harvey Oswald as a murderer of John F. Kennedy, but the evidence suggesting that there was an additional shooter is much sounder than other “facts” brought up by conspiracy researchers, and it must be concluded that there was an additional shooter involved in John F. Kennedy’s assassination. The evidence points to a hypothesis stating that Lee Harvey Oswald and another shooter cooperatively planned and executed the assassination of John F. Kennedy.
It is truly a shame that the Warren Commission collected so much evidence and, according to certain personal testimonies, either tampered with it or disposed of it completely. It is impossible to know whether or not the Warren Commission was guilty of tampering with the evidence of John F. Kennedy’s assassination, so unless more evidence is brought forth, we must evaluate the evidence that is available to draw conclusions—including the evidence released by the Warren Commission, which may or may not have been altered. There is very little evidence that the Warren Commission did not collect, and of that evidence little to none of it actually proves anything definitively. Most of the speculation around the various conspiracy theories is based off of individuals’ testimonies—so, it’s basically a he-said-she-said conundrum where one person’s information either does or does not coincide with others’. All too often in the case of John F. Kennedy’s assassination, different individuals’ “first-hand information” do not match up. That is why little credibility has been given to the theories that a near-majority has not been unanimous on. One theory that could be thought of as conspirative in nature but viable in terms of reputability is the theory that there were actually two shooters involved in John F. Kennedy’s murder. This is a theory that the Warren Commission discarded, but that the House Select Committee on Assassinations did not. In fact, the House Select Committee on Assassinations stated that there was a “high probability” that there were two or more gunmen involved (John F. Kennedy conspiracy theories). This idea was also highly supported by a very high percentage of witnesses that said they believed the shots came from a grassy knoll, and not the Texas School Book Depository that the Warren Commission identified as the position from which Lee Harvey Oswald shot John F. Kennedy. However, there is very solid evidence provided by the Warren Commission criminalizing Lee Harvey Oswald and not all of it can be simply disregarded. While it is impossible to know what the truth behind John F. Kennedy’s assassination is, through the careful evaluation of the credibility and importance of the evidence at the public’s disposal, it is difficult to create a sure and irrefutable theory regarding what happened. It is certain that the Warren Commission proceeded with their investigation strangely, but any speculation as to why or what they did that was possible unethical or designed to hide the truth would be just that: merely speculation. Based on responsible judgment of the evidence available, the most likely theory of who killed John F. Kennedy states that Lee Henry Oswald and one co-conspirator, shooting from the grassy knoll identified by witnesses, together killed John F. Kennedy.
Works Cited
"Assassination of John F. Kennedy." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 19 Apr. 2012. Web. 19 Apr. 2012.
Murphy, Jarrett. "40 Years Later: Who Killed JFK?" CBSNews. CBS Interactive, 05 Dec. 2007. Web. 19 Apr. 2012.
"Report of the President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy." National Archives. The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration. Web. 19 Apr. 2012.
"Report of the Select Committee on Assassinations of the U.S. House of Representatives." National Archives. The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration. Web. 19 Apr. 2012.
John F. Kennedy was elected to President in the 1960 election when he ousted Richard Nixon. John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline Kennedy, made a beautiful couple, and the American people embraced them in their wonderful representation of the quintessential American family. In fact, John F. Kennedy was supported so fully by the American people that even when he did make mistakes, the repercussions from the people of America were less animated than they would have been for a less popular president.
Unfortunately for America, John F. Kennedy’s term and life were cut short on November 22, 1963 when he was gunned down in Dallas, Texas while riding in a presidential motorcade. When the news of John F. Kennedy’s murder broke, a veritable eruption of Mount Media occurred. Tasteful publications ran responsible articles expressing true sadness at the loss of John F. Kennedy, and dirtier organizations attempted to attract readership through the publishing of various conspiracy theories, which varied in their degrees of ridiculousness. ‘Who killed JFK?’ is a question that is still asked today, and while many people have tried to answer it, the truth has not been forthcoming.
There are so many different theories as to who really killed JFK, and why they did it, that the sheer amount of dissention amongst the self-titled “experts” of John F. Kennedy’s assassination suggests that little credibility can really be given to any of them. The Warren Commission, formed by Lyndon Johnson after he became president prior to John F. Kennedy’s death, decided that Lee Harvey Oswald was the sole conspirator and murderer in the assassination of John F. Kennedy, and, from evidence produced by the Warren Commission, that appears to be the truth. Conspiracy theorists believe that the Warren Commission tampered with the evidence that they collected, but because there are very little records or eyewitness accounts of the evidence before it was collected by the Warren Commission (and almost no credible proof), there is no way for experts to conclusively prove that the Warren Commission tampered with or created any evidence. Most of the “evidence” that conspiracy theorists identify is really just glorified eyewitness accounts that vary from person to person with barely any discernable regularities between eyewitnesses cited by different researchers. It is this lack of consistency and reliable evidence that finally identifies Lee Harvey Oswald as a murderer of John F. Kennedy, but the evidence suggesting that there was an additional shooter is much sounder than other “facts” brought up by conspiracy researchers, and it must be concluded that there was an additional shooter involved in John F. Kennedy’s assassination. The evidence points to a hypothesis stating that Lee Harvey Oswald and another shooter cooperatively planned and executed the assassination of John F. Kennedy.
It is truly a shame that the Warren Commission collected so much evidence and, according to certain personal testimonies, either tampered with it or disposed of it completely. It is impossible to know whether or not the Warren Commission was guilty of tampering with the evidence of John F. Kennedy’s assassination, so unless more evidence is brought forth, we must evaluate the evidence that is available to draw conclusions—including the evidence released by the Warren Commission, which may or may not have been altered. There is very little evidence that the Warren Commission did not collect, and of that evidence little to none of it actually proves anything definitively. Most of the speculation around the various conspiracy theories is based off of individuals’ testimonies—so, it’s basically a he-said-she-said conundrum where one person’s information either does or does not coincide with others’. All too often in the case of John F. Kennedy’s assassination, different individuals’ “first-hand information” do not match up. That is why little credibility has been given to the theories that a near-majority has not been unanimous on. One theory that could be thought of as conspirative in nature but viable in terms of reputability is the theory that there were actually two shooters involved in John F. Kennedy’s murder. This is a theory that the Warren Commission discarded, but that the House Select Committee on Assassinations did not. In fact, the House Select Committee on Assassinations stated that there was a “high probability” that there were two or more gunmen involved (John F. Kennedy conspiracy theories). This idea was also highly supported by a very high percentage of witnesses that said they believed the shots came from a grassy knoll, and not the Texas School Book Depository that the Warren Commission identified as the position from which Lee Harvey Oswald shot John F. Kennedy. However, there is very solid evidence provided by the Warren Commission criminalizing Lee Harvey Oswald and not all of it can be simply disregarded. While it is impossible to know what the truth behind John F. Kennedy’s assassination is, through the careful evaluation of the credibility and importance of the evidence at the public’s disposal, it is difficult to create a sure and irrefutable theory regarding what happened. It is certain that the Warren Commission proceeded with their investigation strangely, but any speculation as to why or what they did that was possible unethical or designed to hide the truth would be just that: merely speculation. Based on responsible judgment of the evidence available, the most likely theory of who killed John F. Kennedy states that Lee Henry Oswald and one co-conspirator, shooting from the grassy knoll identified by witnesses, together killed John F. Kennedy.
Works Cited
"Assassination of John F. Kennedy." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 19 Apr. 2012. Web. 19 Apr. 2012.
"John F. Kennedy." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 10 Apr. 2012. Web. 19 Apr. 2012.
"John F. Kennedy Assassination Conspiracy Theories." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 19 Apr. 2012. Web. 19 Apr. 2012.
Murphy, Jarrett. "40 Years Later: Who Killed JFK?" CBSNews. CBS Interactive, 05 Dec. 2007. Web. 19 Apr. 2012.
"Report of the President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy." National Archives. The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration. Web. 19 Apr. 2012.
"Report of the Select Committee on Assassinations of the U.S. House of Representatives." National Archives. The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration. Web. 19 Apr. 2012.
"Vietnam War." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 16 Apr. 2012. Web. 19 Apr. 2012.
"Who Killed JFK?" HowStuffWorks. Web. 19 Apr. 2012.
Posted 8:35 pm 4/19/2012